Some authors bemoan the changes in major publishing because they want the comfort of a nest and a support group.

"It was turned down by all the major publishing houses, and it went into the drawer."

Mr. Berlusconi's family owns major publishing and film distribution companies, newspapers and three out of the country's seven national television channels.

The print run is a bit higher this time: 5,000 copies: puny for major commercial publishing but quite respectable for the genre.

In 1872, he moved the company's headquarters from Koblenz to Leipzig, a major move forward, as most of the reputable major German publishing houses were located there.

The major publishing houses are taking on fewer new mystery writers, he and others said.

But Ms. Cisneros, he said, has been one of the few to break away as a "front-list author" for a major publishing house.

Remember that just because major publishing is having trouble, that doesn't mean people have stopped reading books.

How many major publishing empires were headquartered in Salt Lake?

Although major publishing is new to Ms. London, "I've written ever since I was a child," she said.